In the Premier Division Raqueeb Younas (83 not out) led Jer Lane to victory over visiting Thornton whose Michael Shanks hit 64 runs. The Lane keep the pressure on leaders Booth, as it had an easy nine-wicket win on its short trip into the Bottom at Triangle The scorers at Sowerby St Peter’s were just as busy recording the fall of wickets as they were for runs, as 20 fell for a combined total of only 200 runs. Copley just edged this low scoring contest by four runs to lift itself off the foot of the table with a maximum 12 points. Promoted Queensbury dropped to last place as it lost its home match with Mytholmroyd by six wickets as the match became more of an Earle show, with Jack taking 6-50 followed by Tom’s 106 runs. The home side’s score was held together by Amjad Ali (77) and Mohammed Hanif (73), alas, in vain. In contrast the excellent season of the other promoted team, Oxenhope, continues and it is only 13 points off the top – another good win came at home to SBCI, although the visitors were only defeated by 26 runs.

In the First Division there was a tight finish at bottom team Stones where the visitors, Bridgeholme, squeezed a win by one-wicket. The shock result of the day came at leaders Blackley, whose margin at the top was cut to nine points, after Southowram, or at least Tom Belfield (7-51), rolled over the hosts for a miserly 75 runs. Eight Blackley batsmen failed to reach double figures and six of those failed to trouble the scorers. Previously Dean Crossley (94) and Belfield with 71 runs had helped to set a target of 259 to win that never looked like being achieved. Great Horton PC eased to a five-wicket victory at Shelf as a combination of Matthew Jordon (69), Adam Beesley (63) and Richard Hassell (47) ensured that it jumped above its hosts in the table. Sowerby Bridge got back to winning ways, to leapfrog hosts Cullingworth into second place, thanks in the main to a splendid knock of 85 not out from No 5 batsmen James Holdsworth If Illingworth St Mary’s were favourites for the Second Division title at the start of the season then the bookies will have now stopped taking such bets. Its lead at the top of the divison is now 19 points and the latest victory was by a mammoth 224 runs. Clayton was put to the sword as the home side rattled up 323-6, led by an opening partnership of 190 between James Lawton (138) and Callum Cook (74). A worthy mention here for Clayton’s fourth change bowler, Aqib Mahamaduz, who took 5-66. Its batsmen however were never likely to manage the target and were back in the pavilion for only 99, Stuart Thompson talking 5-10. The top seven batsmen of second-placed Bradshaw all reached double figures, led by Piers Fisher’s half-century, as it posted a target of 278 for visitors Birchencliffe. It proved to be 159 runs too much as Aaron Buckley was almost unplayable in a unbroken opening spell of 8.2-4-21-7. There was an astonishing match at Luddendenfoot where the Upper Hopton team must have dreamed that victory was in sight as Mark Broadbent took his seventh wicket, including a hat-trick, with the home team’s score showing 112-7. Some 175 runs later, as Tom Hosker hit 122 not out in only 70 balls and Daniel Barron chipped in with 67 not out, the dream had turned into a nightmare. Broadbent finished with 7-127 and his teammates could then only muster 215-7, no doubt suffering from shock from the earlier onslaught. Old Town’s revival continued with an excellent home win against Mount as another lower order batsman, Istikhar Ahmed, hit 94 not out. The hosts’ bowlers were also in fine form as no less than six of them shared the Mount wickets as the Batley side was bowled out for 126 runs. To say the bowlers were on top in the Outlane v Low Moor HT match would be an understatement. Basic facts were that 166 runs were scored, 20 wickets taken and only 44.4 overs required to complete it. Mandeep Sidana took 5-39 for the Moor and Ben Lawton 5-37 for the hosts, who ran out winners by 18 runs. Leymoor escaped from the bottom two with a 91-run win at Greetland where bowlers were again mostly on top. The home team’s Sajid Ali took 6-44 only to be eclipsed by Dean Dyson, of the Golcar outfit, with a winning performance of 7-34.

An apology to Northowram HT viisting Warley as the home team forgot to submit a full scorecard by the deadline for the second time this season and as a result some individual performances have been missed.